This is hard for some people to read about, hear about, even to think about. It is hard for people to witness, still harder for them to believe. It is a problem nonetheless.
People often say that those who self-mutilate are only in it for the "attention" or are "cowards" who cannot face their problems. People often cannot, or will not, open up and try to understand.

About:
To Write Love On Her Arms (TWLOHA) is a non-proffit organization that helps those who suffer from addiction, depression, and habits of self-harm. They frequently have booths at concerts, many bands support them:
Switchfoot, Anberlin, Bayside, Evanescence, Thrice, The Almost, Paramore, The Rocket Summer, Jimmy Eat World, Underoath, Jon Foreman, Dustin Kensrue, Copeland, Josh Moore, Sleeping at Last, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Plain White T's, Meg and Dia, Mayday Parade, Jonezetta, Between the Trees, Band Marino, Lovedrug, Lydia, The Myriad, The Classic Crime, Fireflight, Sullivan, Vedera, Cool Hand Luke, Mat Kearney, Matt Wertz, Dave Barnes, Derek Webb, Bradley Hathaway, Eye Alaska, Gasoline Heart, Mike Dunn & the Kings of New England

The Facts:
121 million people worldwide suffer from depression, 18 million of those cases in the U.S.A.
2/3 of those suffering from depression never seek treatment
Depression often co-occurs with anxiety disorders and substance abuse, with 30 percent of teens with depression also developing a substance abuse problem
Among teenagers it is estimated that 20 percent will suffer from depression at some point by the time they reach adulthood

Self-Injury Facts:
Defined as the deliberate, repetitive, impulsive, non-lethal harming of one’s self
Forms of self-injury often include:
1)cutting,
2)burning,
3)picking or interfering with wound healing,
4)infecting oneself,
5)punching/hitting self or objects,
6)inserting objects in to skin,
7)bruising or breaking bones, and
8)some forms of hair pulling
Experts estimate that 4% of the population struggle with self-injury. Contrary to public and popular belief, it has the same occurance between males and females
Self-injury, like many addictions, is often a coping mechanism to deal with some manner of internal pain
While self-injury may be someone’s way to cope with or relieve painful or hard-to-express feelings and is generally NOT a suicide attempt, relief is always temporary, and usually only perpetuates a destructive cycle that continues the struggle. This cycle often means that those who do not get help can become more depressed and shameful, adding to the pain and need for relief, thus perpetuating the cycle
Self-injury, like alcohol and drug abuse and eating disorders, is addictive, and thus not something that is easy to simply ‘stop’

TWLOHA Website, MySpace, Facebook Links:
MySpace: [link]
Facebook: [link]
TWLOHA Website: [link]

Ending Notes
I reccomend you check out this brilliant orginization. People suffering from addiction, depression, and self-harm need the support they offer. Read the rest of the story of Renee Yohe, the first women to go through TWLOHA:
She has known such great pain; haunted dreams as a child, the near-constant presence of evil ever since. She has felt the touch of awful naked men, battled depression and addiction, and attempted suicide. Her arms remember razor blades, fifty scars that speak of self-inflicted wounds. Six hours after I meet her, she is feeling trapped, two groups of "friends" offering opposite ideas. Everyone is asleep. The sun is rising. She drinks long from a bottle of liquor, takes a razor blade from the table and locks herself in the bathroom. She cuts herself, using the blade to write "FUCK UP" large across her left forearm...

I understand. Though my life has been blessed in so many ways, I still suffer from an addiction to cutting. I did not do it for attention, I did not do it because I was afraid, I did it because it felt like the only option. This is real, it happens to real people, and I truly believe that we can all prevent it if we band together as a community.
In short, reach out!

Write love, stop the bleeding, rescue is possible.

LOVE IS THE MOVEMENT